An organic light emitting device (OLED) includes an anode, a cathode, and an organic light emitting layer. Additional layers such as moisture absorption layers or insulating layers may also be included in an OLED. In order to produce light emissions from an OLED, a voltage is applied across the anode and cathode via a voltage source. Electrons are directly injected into the organic light emitting layer from the cathode and holes are directly injected into the organic light emitting layer from the anode. The electrons and holes travel through the light emitting layer and recombine to form excited molecules. The excited molecules emit radiation (i.e. visible light or UV radiation) as they decay.
OLEDs have been implemented in various technologies such as television screens, computer monitors, mobile phones, PDAs, and watches. However, several factors have hindered the widespread use of OLEDs as a direct replacement for lighting options in household and commercial businesses such as material availability, product lifetime, and color balance.
Conventionally, lighting systems can incorporate the use of a light level detector such as a photocell. However, this configuration requires that the photocell be positioned a distance away from the lamps used in the lighting system because a photocell is unable to differentiate between the light emitted from the lighting system and ambient light. In addition, in order to implement this conventional configuration, an additional component (the photocell) adds complexity and cost to the lighting system.